On this page: Xenocrates – Xenocritus

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XENOCRATES.

2. Of Chalcedon, a relation of the celebrated philosopher, was himself a philosopher and the author of an oration on the death of Arsinoe, en­titled \6yos 'ApunvoyTt^s. (Diog. I. c.)

3. Another philosopher, who wrote a very in­different elegiac poem ; which gives Diogenes oc­casion to remark that, when poets apply themselves to prose composition, they succeed, but when prose writers attempt poetry, they fail; since the one endowment comes from nature, the other from art. Many examples might be cited to confirm this observation ; but there are some instances against it: for example, the prose of Virgil is said to have been as much inferior to his poetry, as the poetry of Cicero was to his prose. (Menag. ad loc.)

6. The author of an epigram in the Greek An­thology, on a statue of Hermes. There is no evi­dence to determine whether he was the same person as either of the two philosophers of Chalce­don, or as either of the two writers of poetry men­tioned above (Nos/ 3, 5). Fabricius identifies hirn with the younger philosopher of Chalcedon. (Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. iii. p. 193, vol. iv. p. 32G ; Brunck, Anal. vol. ii. p. 59; Jacobs, Anth. Graec. vol. ii. p. 59, vol. xiii. p. 963.)

7. Of Ephesus, an historical and geographical writer, frequently quoted by Pliny, who, in one passage, adds to his name the following remark, " qui de iis nuperrime scripsit" (H. N. xxxvii. 2). He flourished, therefore, during, or immediately before, the time of Pliny. (Vossius, de Hist. Graec. p. 509, ed. Westermann.)

8. A chronographer, who is quoted in the Etymologicum Magnum (s. v. *Affffvpia), but of whom we have no further information. (Vossius, I. c.) [P. S.]

XENOCRATES (Eei/oKpc^s), a physician of Aphrodisias in Cilicia (Galen, De Simplic. Medi-cam. Temper, ac Facult. vi. praef. vol. xi. p. 793), who must have lived about the middle of the first century after Christ, as he was probably a contem­porary of Andromachus the Younger. (See Gal. De Compos. Medicam. sec. Loc. iii. 1, vol. xii. p. 627, and De Ther. ad Pis. c. 12. vol. xiv. p. 260.) Galen says that he lived in the second generation before himself (wrar^ robs irdinrovs ^ucoj>, De Simplic. Medicam. Temper, ac Facult. x. 1. vol. xii. p. 248). He wrote some pharmaceutical works, and is blamed by Galen (/. c.) for making use of disgust­ing remedies, for instance, .human brains, flesh, liver, urine, excrement, &c. One of his works was entitled Ilept rfjs curb rwv Zoowv 'H^eAe^as, " De Utilitate ex Animalibus Percipienda" (id. ibid. x. 2. § 4, vol. xii. p. 261.) He is several times quoted by Galen, and also by ClemensAlex-andrinus (Strotn. i. p. 717); Artemidorus(Oneirocr. iv. 24); Pliny (PL N. xx. 82); Oribasius(Coll. Medic, ii. 58, p. 225) ; Aetius (i. 2. 84, iv. 2. 35, 3. 14, pp. 75, 706, 760), and Alexander Trallia-nus (i. 15, xii. 8, pp. 156, 344). Besides some short fragments of his writings there is extant a little essay by Xenocrates, Uepl tt}s cbrb twv 'Evt-Spwv Tpo<^)7)s, " De Alimento ex Aquatilibus," preserved by Oribasius ; which is an interesting record of the state of Natural History at the time in which he lived. It was first published in Greek,

XENOCRATES, a statuary of the school of Lysippus, was the pupil either of Tisicrates or of Euthycrates, both of whom he surpassed in the number of his works. He also wrote works upon the art. (Plin. H. N. 8. s. 34. § 23 ; Diog. Laert. iv. 15.) He must have flourished about 01. 130, b. c. 260. In another passage of Pliny (xxxv. 10. s. 36. § 5) Xenocrates is quoted for a statement respecting Parrhasius. It does not necessarily follow that he wrote a distinct Avork on painting, for the observation quoted might very well have been made in connection with the general subject of artistic composition. In the Elenchus of book xxxiii. Xenocrates is mentioned, among Pliny's authorities, as a writer on the toreutic art (de to- reutice), and in that of book xxxv., as a writer on metal-work in general (de metallica disciplina). In the latter passage (and in the former also, accord­ ing to some MSS.) he is called Xenocrate (abl.) Zenonis. Whether his father's name was Zeno, or whether Zenonis is an error for Zenone, we have not the means of deciding. It should also be men­ tioned, with respect to the second passage quoted above from Pliny (H. N. xxxv. 10. s. 36. § 5), that Junius(de Pict. Vet. ii. 3 ; comp. Menag. ad Diog. iv. 15) proposes to read Hypsicratesfor Xe­ nocrates ; but all the MSS. have Xenocrates^ and the reasons assigned by Junius for altering it are insufficient. [P. S.]

XENOCRITUS (Hej/<tep£Tos), literary. 1. Of Locri Epizephyrii, in Lower Italy, a musician and lyric poet, who is mentioned by Plutarch (de Mus. 9, p. 1134, b.), as one of the leaders of the second school of Dorian music, which was founded by Thaletas, and as a composer of Paeans. A little further on, Plutarch says that some ascribed to him Dithyrambs on heroic subjects, and that it was disputed whether he wrote Paeans. The discre­pancy between this passage and the former is easily explained. Plutarch is here following Glaucus, on whose authority he adds that Xenocritus lived later than Thaletas. [thales.] The common text has aevoKpdrovs twice in this paragraph ; but He-voupirov is evidently the true reading : there are other examples of the same error ; as in the passage of Diogenes referred to under xenocrates, No. 5, where it is almost certain that Xenocritus is meant; as Aristoxenus, who mentioned him, wrote expressly on these early musicians. (See Plut. I. c. 11.)

Xenocritus appears to have been the founder of the Locrian style of lyric poetry, which was a modification of the Aeolian ; and, if the view just given of the passage of Diogenes be correct, we must ascribe to him some, and perhaps the first, of the AoKpiicd $fffj.a,Ta, or erotic odes, in imitation of Sappho and Erinna. He is said to have been blind from his birth. (Heracleid. Pont. Pol. Fr. xxix.)

The whole subject of the Locrian school of poetry is fully discussed by Bockh (de Metr.